


Blind Dates

by Morgan_Jean



Category: SEAL Team (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-19
Updated: 2020-11-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:07:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27624490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Morgan_Jean/pseuds/Morgan_Jean
Summary: Everyone gets nervous about blind dates.
Relationships: Trent Sawyer & Original Character
Comments: 2
Kudos: 22





	Blind Dates

**Author's Note:**

> I finished this back in August and totally forgot to post it until the other day. 
> 
> Big thanks to RoboFoxTrot for beta reading this!

He’s never been so nervous before. Not even while working. When he was working, it was just instinct. When he first got married, he wasn’t even worried -he was, however, hungover from the night before with his friends. They had been dating since high school, so getting married wasn’t that hard. Hell, he wasn’t even nervous about getting divorced. It happens, this life was hard on people. 

But now? Fuck, he couldn’t stop his leg from shaking, and he kept wiping his hands on his pants, trying to prevent them from being clammy. It wasn’t working.  _ I’m going to kill Brock and Cassie. There will be bloodshed. They better name their firstborn after me.  _ Trent thought to himself. He didn’t know much about his blind date other than her name is Piper. He wanted more information, but Brock would just smile, roll his eyes and say, “You’re gonna love her, man.” Trent even cornered Casper at the bar and tried to get information from her, but she just laughed and said, “Trust me, Trent!” He didn’t. He didn’t trust either of them. If there was something Trent hated more than one of his brothers being injured, it was blind dates.  Last month was a perfect example. Stella was stopping by Clay’s; she mentioned she had a single friend from work, a new teacher that taught art. She and Clay set the two up. Only to Trent’s shock and horror when the woman turned out to be a crazy animal activist and threw red paint from inside her purse at their waiter in the restaurant screaming, “Meat is Murder!”

Pissed was too kind a word to describe how he felt. He swore revenge, sweet,  _ sweet _ revenge. A week later, Clay had stormed into the cage room with a fresh baby face, his precious beard gone. While Trent never admitted to putting Nair in his shaving cream can, he never denied it either. Clay thought that was the end until he got a call from Stella in tears. A snake was loose in her classroom, and she was currently on top of her desk, freaking out. Even though that was four weeks ago, Stella swore there are eggs somewhere. Trent admitted he was not the one responsible for the snake -and eggs- in the classroom. Brock, on the other hand, never denied his involvement when being questioned by their youngest teammate much to Stella’s horror.

Trent hated blind dates. You never knew what you were getting yourself into. Trent hated that, too many things could go wrong. What if he didn’t like the person, but they brought  _ all  _ their emotional baggage on the date? It’s not like he can just leave a woman who just admitted she has abandonment issues. Mentally, Trent began putting together a revenge plan. How did he know this date was going to go wrong? It was a blind date. They always go wrong. Hopefully, this one doesn’t throw paint at an innocent waiter. 

It was already 7:20; the date was set for 7:00 on the dot. Of course, on a Friday night, there could be a million things to come up, but he wasn’t patient enough to wait. He already waited 15 more minutes than he usually would. Trent stands and pulls his wallet out, ready to leave the poor waitress who waited on him a nice tip when a soft voice spoke behind him. 

“Sorry, I’m late… I hope you’re not leaving on my account.”

He quickly turns around to find a brunette beauty with soft hickory eyes, staring back at him, a small, bashful smile on her lips. 

“Oh no…I was just…” He flounders, “I was…”

The younger woman giggled, “You were getting your wallet out. That’s a universal sign for leaving.” Trent looks down at the wallet in hand and blushes slightly. “Yeah, I guess it is.” 

“I would’ve called, but Cassie didn’t give me your number.” He chuckles and nods, holding out his hand.

“Trent.”

“Piper.” 

She takes her seat across from him and gives another sheepish smile, “I do apologize for being late. I changed multiple times, and then I got caught in traffic, and-” Trent smiles, “It’s not a problem, Piper. I was still here.” She tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear and says, “I’m glad. Brock talks highly of you. I’m excited to meet the man responsible for keeping him alive finally.” Trent blushes and clears his throat. “It’s nothing.” Piper grins, “I don’t know about that. I think you’re just being modest.” His cheeks burn as he quickly looks down at Italia’s menu. 

“So uh,” he rubs his hand on his knee, “what sounds good to you?” Piper gives a small snort shooting him a glance before looking down at her menu, “Honestly, it’s Italian food. It all sounds good to me.” That earns a small chuckle from Trent, “Have you been here before?” He glances up at Piper and grins at her flabbergasted expression. “I… well… I wouldn’t say-” 

“Yes or no, Piper.” His grin only widens as she sighs and drops her head in defeat. 

“Yes, I’ve been here before. It’s actually one of my favorite restaurants.” 

Trent laughs, “Okay, I get it. You know all about me, picked the restaurant, and all I know about you is your name.” His tone is lighthearted, playful even. Her mouth opens once or twice before any sound comes out, “I hate blind dates, okay? The only way I was going to come on this date is if it was a place I was comfortable with.” Trent lets out a loud laugh, “Cheater! This is a blind date; we’re both supposed to be in an uncomfortable place.” 

Piper starts laughing, “You’re right. You’re right,” her gaze meets his, “Next date we choose a place neither of us has been, deal?”  Her eyes twinkled with irrepressible mischief. A smile works its way to Trent’s lips. 

“There’s going to be a next date?” 

“I think so,” Piper says softly, her smile finding its way to her eyes. 

Their waitress took their orders, though Trent couldn’t tell anyone what he asked for; he already forgot by the time she left because his eyes barely left Piper’s. He couldn’t remember the last woman to have this hold on him. To have him entirely enthralled by her mere presence. Trent vaguely remembered Brock telling him that he was going to love this woman and made a mental promise to buy his best friend a bottle of Jack, hell, he’d by one for Cassie too. Why the fuck did she wait so long to introduce the two?

Trent leaned forward, just a tad, “I’m assuming Cassie’s at least dropped hints at what I do for a living?” He sips his wine waiting for Piper to respond. She studies her glass, “She’s mentioned that you work with Brock, I figured you guys weren’t normal Navy men. Brock’s said you guys are Seals, but…” her gaze drifts towards his eyes, “I get the feeling you’re not normal Seals? There’ve been more than enough nights to me waking up at ungodly hours to a Cassie in pajamas at my door because Reynolds left for work, would I be correct?”  He leans back, choosing his words in his head carefully before speaking, but truth be told he didn’t give Piper enough credit. 

His silence drew her to nod slowly. “You guys catch the big top-secret bad guys, huh? Like Bin-Laden?” And it slips out before he has a chance to stop himself, “That wasn’t us. That was a different team.” There’s a ghost of a smile on her lips in the shadows of the candlelight, “I remember that night when that story broke. I was in D.C with Cassie; we were 21, you know? For ten years it’s been nothing but war in the Middle East. We went to the White House; we were there with the others; cheering, hugging strangers, waving the flag, and singing the National Anthem. The pride that was in the air that night… I’ve never felt that alive.” Piper blushes suddenly, embarrassed at the sudden topic. “I’m sorry, this… is a terrible dinner topic, especially for a place like-”

Trent shakes his head and clears his throat, “I was uh… deployed when the story broke. I think there was part of me -the naive part of me, that thought when he was taken out that the war would just end, you know? That we’d pack up and go home. The other part of me knew that just because he was gone didn’t mean anything was going to change.” Her eyes study him for a moment, “So you’ve been doing this a long time?”

He nods, “Not as long as my team leader, but pretty close.” 

A corner of Piper’s lip twitches upwards. “I was eleven when the towers fell.” Trent blushes, his eyes darting down to the table cloth. “I uh,” he fights the urge to run a hand, threw his hair, “I was twenty when it happened.” As their plates are brought out, Piper lets out an airy laugh. 

“And now we’re both here.” 

He grins slightly, “And now we’re both here.” 

* * *

Piper’s cackle fills the restaurant as Trent finishes telling a story about Clay being chased by African bees, which lead to Cerberus hopping in excitement after the young Seal and Brock frantically chasing after his dog. All three came out of it stung. Thus Trent’s nickname for the two was born; The Badluck Duo. Piper covers her mouth, trying to contain the laughter, but it didn’t do much good.

“Oh my God, when did this happen?” She dabs at her eyes, laughter still rippling through her, Trent chuckles coming down from his laughter. 

“Crap, this was like the third week we had Spenser.” That does it, Piper’s back to laughing, actual tears sliding down her cheeks. When did her laugh become contagious? Trent couldn’t remember, but he’s suddenly laughing alongside her; their food forgotten for the time being. 

“I’m sorry to bother you,” their waitress whispers as she comes over to the table, Trent tries his best to contain his laughter as Piper turns her head to the side, one of her hands coming up to cover her mouth, “But we’ve had a few noise complaints from some of our other customers. If you could, please keep it down.” Trent locks eyes with Piper and nods. “Yes, of course. Sorry to be any trouble.” The waitress shakes her head and drops her voice, “Between the three of us it’s nice to hear laughter in this place. I don’t mind but,” she shrugs her shoulders and gives them a grateful smile before walking away. The two share another look and laugh before continuing with their meal. 

“Okay,” Trent sets his fork down and reaches for his glass of water, “you know what I do for a living,” he takes a quick sip of his water, “what about you? What occupies your time?” Piper dabs at her lips. “Promise you won’t laugh?” Trent grins, “I won’t promise you, but I did make a promise to the waitress, so I kind of have to keep it.” The brunette throws him a playful look before continuing. “I work as a Blue Ridge Mountain Guide.” Trent raises an eyebrow, “Oh? What’s that?” Piper sips her water, “Mountain climbing.”

“Get out. You’re serious?” It wasn’t meant to sound mean, and he severely hoped it didn’t come out that way. For a second, he’s afraid for the worst by the expression on Piper’s face; a soft snort escapes her mouth, causing Trent to let out a sigh of relief. 

“What’s so shocking about that? Do I not seem like the type?” 

A smile tugs at his lips, “I never said that.” 

“You didn’t have to! It’s the way you said, “‘You’re serious?’” She mocks his voice, causing both of them to laugh. “And for your information, I am one of the most asked for guides when people are planning trips.” Trent sits back, impressed, “No, shit?” Piper nods, “It’s actually a lot of fun.” She giggles at his expression, “What?” 

“I have so many questions.”

“Ask away.” 

If he was impressed before by just learning about her job, he was definitely impressed now. Trent sat forward, intrigued by her stories of mountain and rock climbing. She answered each of his questions like an expert. “What made you want to climb Kilimanjaro?” He’s heard guys talk about wanting to climb it, Clay being one of them, but he’s never actually met a person to do so until now.

“It’s always been a dream to climb it, but it became a serious life goal after my dad passed. He climbed it when I was seven, and when he came home, he promised to take me when I was older so I could appreciate it more but…” She trails off, her eyes darting down to the half-eaten pasta. Trent frowns; he reaches over the table and places a hand on top of hers, squeezing it gently. He opens his mouth to speak, but Piper shakes her head, “I know what you’re going to say, don’t say it. It happened a long time ago.” She gave Trent a small smile letting him know she was all right.

He clears his throat, “So what made you take Cassie along with you? Doesn’t she swear by-”

“Yoga and Pilates.” The two say in unison before bursting into laughter.  “It wasn’t easy,” Piper giggles, “but uh, she decided to do it to raise money. Trust me when I say I’ve never been more glad when a hike was done. For seven months, it was non-stop complaining, then the actual hike. It never stopped until we were back in the states.” Piper laughs. “She was a real trooper, but goodness, that woman does not like hiking.” Trent snorts, “How is she dating the mountain goat?” Her eyes twinkle with delight, “I have no fucking clue. She complains then too.”

As dinner continues, both exchange stories of work. He doesn’t remember which one brought it up, but soon he’s telling her about a night mission in Chile, aside from all the walking it was an easy mission, the team was taking a quick break and hydrating when Clay points out an odd-looking plane. 

“Like a bunch of children, we all look up, and Spenser’s right, it’s this odd-looking plane that’s flying fucking fast with what looks like flames coming out of the back. At first, Ray thinks it’s falling out of the sky, he gets ready to call it in, all our eyes are still glued to this thing, and it’s like it knew we were watching because the next thing we know this whatever you call it turns at a 90-degree angle and speeds away into the night sky.” 

Piper’s mouth drops open, “What. The. Fuck?”

“That’s exactly what we said. That’s not a-”

“No fucking plane does that.” 

Trent laughs, “That’s what Brock said as we just stood there in the desert with our fucking mouths open.” 

Piper lets out a cackle, “Oh my God, what did you guys do?”

“Well, Ray wanted to call it in still, but none of us knew what to say or how even to make that call. I mean, we don’t even know what we saw. Jase just told him not to call it in. We went on with our mission, business as usual.” 

She covers her mouth and wiggles in her seat. “Oh, my God!” Trent laughs. “That was about a year ago. We still don’t know what it was, and we never talk about it.”

“I can tell you what it fucking was,” Piper wiggles again, a clear shiver running down her spine. “Oh, my God!” She squeals as Trent’s head tilts back with a laugh erupting from his body. She mutters under her breath, “Holy shit.” Trent laughs again, shaking his head. “What about you, you’re out in the wilderness, you must see crazy shit all the time.” 

Piper takes a sip of her water and shoots him a glance, “Once when I was in college, during the summer, I was leading a private group up in Wintergreen, and the entire time I’m climbing, I felt like I’m being watched. I even turned to the lady next to me and asked if she felt the same. We get to the top, and as I turn around in the trees below, I see it. I whisper for the lady beside me, she looks, and we’re both seeing  _ it _ ,” Trent’s leaning in now, a bit growing in his stomach. “I couldn’t believe my eyes; there was this hairy beast-like thing staring at us. Ten feet tall at least, standing upright like a goddamn human. And it just...stared at us. Watching our every move. I don’t know if I screamed or my client screamed but next thing I know, it’s taking off back into the forest.”

“Fucking shit, Piper. You’re joking, right?” She shakes her head, and Trent knows she’s telling the truth, the brunette had gone pale with every word.

“Holy shit.” 

“I know.”

Piper covers her mouth again another shiver running down her spine.

* * *

Before Trent knew it, time had passed. They had empty plates, the candles had melted down to half the original size, and it only took a glance around to see that there were only a few scattered souls left in the restaurant, including them. Piper’s laughing at some story he’s shared, but he suddenly can’t remember what it was. A smile tugs at his lips as he takes her in, the little laugh lines around her eyes, the way she covers her mouth in an attempt to conceal her contagious laugh. And he wants to take her hair down from that bun just to see what she’d look like without it because if she blows him away with it up, then he knows she’d be the death of him with it down. 

Trent can’t help but laugh, not with her and definitely not at her, but at himself. At how nervous and upset he was at his friend for setting this blind date up. At the fact, that he almost left and missed out on this incredible woman. And Trent knows at this moment that he does want to see her again. He wants to hear more stories about her climbing adventures; he wants to know more about this woman that showed up to dinner twenty-minutes late in a simple black dress just to claim that she had changed multiple times and still looked more stunning than he could’ve imagined. Trent mentally thanked Cassie for insisting he get his hair cut, so he at least stood a chance against Piper, his hair and beard hadn’t been this short since Paris. 

“Okay, okay, okay.” Piper clasps her hands together, her voice pulling him out of his thoughts, “You strike me as a coffee drinker, I could be wrong though, you just seem like a person who favors coffee over say a smoothie in the morning.” Trent gasps, a hand moving to his heart, “I’m insulted, Piper. I prefer green juice in the morning.” Her smile falters, “Wait? Really?” Trent looks dead serious, but only for a moment, a smile flickers on his face, and her gasp turns into a hearty laugh. 

“Go on with your assumptions,” Trent laughs, grabbing his water glass and taking a drink. She throws a dirty smile at him, he grins. “I have to know, Starbucks or Dunkin’.” 

“Shit.” 

Piper snorts, “Can’t decide?” 

“That’s… huh. I guess- shit. I don’t know.” 

And Piper’s laughing again, her head tossed back, causing those who are still in the restaurant to turn and look in their direction. A laugh ripples through Trent. “In all seriousness, Starbucks has better coffee…” Piper makes a face earning another laugh from the medic. “I don’t know; Dunkin’ has better iced coffee.” 

“Starbucks spends more money on better quality coffee beans.”

“Dunkin’s has donuts.”

Trent grins and gives her a head nod, “You like their donuts?”

“I do,” Piper’s voice raises half an octave higher, followed by a soft laugh, “it’s a problem.” She whispers the last part causing Trent to snort. He checks his watch, “I think there’s one a few blocks from here that might still be open if you care to take a short walk.” Piper perks up, “Are you serious? Don’t joke about donuts.” Trent grins, “I’m serious.” Her smile is all he needs as confirmation. He waves his hand to a passing waitress, “Check, please.” 

* * *

August had to be Trent’s favorite month, even with the high humidity and no wind. The weather was cooling off; it was a sign that the seasons were shifting and changing. Trent was always looking forward to Autumn. 

“It’s so pretty out.” Piper’s voice is soft as they cross the street. He half thinks she’s lying because while he does love this month, the humidity is somewhere in the 90s and the wind was murdered by it. But when he looks at her, she has a sparkle in her eye that tells him she’s serious. Trent lets out a soft snort shaking his head, “You’re crazy.” She nudges him playfully, “For your information, I happen to love the night. Stargazing is a pass time of mine.” He raises a brow at her, “Oh?” She nods and carefully steps closer to him. “I fell in love with it after we moved out of the city.” 

“What city?” 

Piper licks her lips; he can see the gears working in her head. “I lived in Brooklyn for a while before my mom moved us to upstate New York.” Trent chokes on the thick air, “You lived in Brooklyn? Fucking shit, Piper, you do  _ not _ sound like you grew up there!” Piper lets out a howl of laughter and clings to his arm. “What, you sayin’ I don’t sound like a New Yorker?” She had slipped so effortlessly into a Brooklyn accent Trent almost tripped. “How did? Wait. What?” 

Piper lets out a cackle, “I did theater in high school and college, I wanted to be an actress and figured I wouldn’t get any good roles if I had the Brooklyn accent,” she had slipped easily into her previous accent, “so in college I hired a dialect coach with the money I made from rock climbing and we settled on a Northern Virginia accent… much to my mother’s disappointment.” 

“Where’d you move to?”

“Guess.”

“I’m not too familiar with upstate New York,” Trent laughs, playfully nudging Piper.

“Fine, I’ll give you one hint.” 

“One hint? That’s it? Not fair.” He laughs. 

Piper thinks for a moment she shoots him a glance before looking back at the spot in front of her. 

“‘Do you believe in Miracles’?” 

Trent pauses, “That’s the hint?” 

She nods, a smile growing on her lips as she repeated, “That’s the hint.”

It clicks in his head, he’s heard that quote before, albeit a long time ago. But it’s stored away with other quotes and phrases he’s seen in movies. “‘Yes!’” You moved to Lake Placid, the Miracle on Ice.” Piper giggles and nods her head. “Yep.” Trent grins at her laugh and fights the urge to wrap an arm around her shoulders because he’s not sure if they’re there yet, but god, that laugh makes him wish they were.  Trent opens the door for his date stepping inside right after her. He lets out a soft sigh of relief at the cold air conditioning that hits the back of his already sweaty neck. Piper bites her lip looking at the menu, Trent can’t hide his smile as he shoots her a glance. “You really need to look at the menu?” She drops her head and laughs, “No. I’m just being polite because I don’t know if you already know what you want, but I get the same every time I come into one of these places.” He can’t help but laugh

Two chocolate glazed cake donuts and ice mocha coffees later Piper was all but buzzing as they walked back. She let out a questionable moan as she bit into her glazed treat, Trent guffawed at the sound. “What?” Piper laughs before taking a sip of her drink. “The donut is  _ not _ that good for a sound like that.” She gawks at him. “Excuse you? If you don’t think it’s  _ that _ good -which by the way, it totally is- then why get it in the first place?” Trent smiles, “I want you to like me,” he quickly takes a drink of his coffee to hide the ridiculous blush he was feeling. Piper nudges him, “You didn’t have to get the same donut for me to like you,” she shoots him a glance and grins at his reddening face. “What’s your favorite anyway?”

He thinks for a moment, Trent couldn’t remember the last time he had a serious conversation with someone about donuts, they were just always there whenever Blackburn called them. “Wait, like at Dunkin’ or in general?”

“Ah, good catch. I have to say both; it’s a serious question.” 

“Of course,” he shoots her a grin, “At Dunkin’, you can never go wrong with the Boston cream pie donut,” this earns a sound that could be compared to a cat’s hiss from the New Yorker beside him, Trent laughs, “I’m sorry is that not a good answer?” 

“Oh, just get on with it,” Piper rolls her eyes, her feathers ruffled by the donut choice. Trent grins, “In general, I tend to lean towards the old-fashioned donut. Chocolate or not doesn’t matter to me; I’m always reaching for those at work.” The brunette gives an approving head nod. “Okay, I’ll accept that one. The Boston one though, that could be a problem.” 

“First of all, Dunkin’ got its start in Massachusetts. So your whole “I’m a New Yorker who hates Boston” facade sucks. Second of all, I refuse to believe you don’t eat Boston Cream pies. How could you not?”

“You really think in my household we had anything that could be from Massachusetts? Really? Both my parents grew up in New York, my mom lived in Brooklyn, and my dad was born and raised in the Bronx. If something Boston-origin entered my household, it was tossed in the trash.” 

“What about the lobster roll. Doesn’t that come from Massachusetts?”

“Connecticut actually,” Piper says matter-of-factly with a laugh. 

A hot, sticky wind blows past them, and suddenly Trent can’t wait for the team’s diving trip to Florida in two weeks. Just thinking about being in the water made him gitty with anticipation. He steals a glance at Piper; she’s running her iced coffee across her forehead; a sigh of satisfaction escapes her lips. And Trent can’t help but feel the tiniest bit depressed their date was over when they returned to the Italian restaurant. 

Piper sips her coffee, eyeing him as he leans against the side of the building. “I guess the date’s over…”  _ Great now I can’t fucking talk properly _ . She flashes him a small smile, “It doesn’t have to be, I don’t live far. Only about a ten-minute walk from here…” Suddenly she’s blushing like crazy, “I mean like… you could walk me home if you want. I didn’t mean- it shouldn’t have come out like-” Piper’s face turns crimson with embarrassment as she stutters. Trent lets out a deep belly laugh, “Wait, hold up, all this time I thought you were late because of traffic. You walked here?”

“I did walk here, and there was a lot of traffic. You don’t want little ol’ me getting hit by a truck, do you?” A smile is tugging at her lips, and  _ god _ Trent just wants to kiss her. He chuckles and pushes himself off the wall, “C’mon, Joker. I’d be more than happy to walk ya home.” She makes the smallest face at the sudden nickname. “Do I have to be the Joker? I mean of all people? Can’t I be Harley?” Piper asks as the two begin walking towards her apartment. 

“You know, some would argue she’s crazier than the Joker himself, you sure you want to be called Harley?”

“She carries a giant mallet, that’s pretty badass.”

Trent doesn’t argue because she is right, that is pretty badass, and before he knows it, the two are debating which Joker actor is the best. Both agree that Jared Leto’s performance in Suicide Squad was the worst; it was cringy and just plain bad. Piper even went as far as to say that Harley Quinn wouldn’t be with  _ that _ Joker. She was far superior to him. Cameron Monaghan wasn’t much better in Gotham, but Trent admitted that if it were between Leto and Monaghan, he’d choose Monaghan. Luckily, for Trent, at least, both of them agreed that Heath Ledger was the best Joker (he’d never admit it, but he was slightly worried Piper was going to say Phoenix’s performance was the best).  They pause at a crosswalk, and while Trent can’t be sure, he swears that Piper is vibrating just standing still. She’s shifting on her feet, reminding him a bit of Cerberus. He gives her the smallest of nudges only to be greeted by a mirth filled grin. “What?” Piper asks, giving him a push. 

“What’s your favorite movie?” 

Trent cackles at the change of her expression. She punches him playfully in the arm, “Why would you ask such a question? Do you know how hard that is? Oh, my God.” 

He rubs his upper arm, “Oh my God over a movie? I think you just left a bruise! Fuck, remind me not to piss you off.” Piper chortles, “Please, I didn’t even put any force behind it.”

“Right,” he laughs, “If I get a bruise you’re paying for coffee next time.” 

She shoots him a grin, “There’s going to be a next time?” 

Trent shoulders her gently again as they begin walking. “I think so.”

“So is this like my favorite movie of all time, or like this past year?” 

“Of all time.”

He steals a glance at Piper and grins as she chews on her lower lip. “Too hard?”

“No, but you’ll laugh at me.” She laughs, covering her face out of embarrassment. 

“Hey, now, I will never laugh at a person’s favorite movie, but if it’s a questionable choice, I’ll probably ask a million questions trying to figure out why it’s their favorite. So what’s your favorite movie, Piper.”

She lets out a distressed groan, but a smile is creeping onto her lips. “Halloween Town.”

Trent gawks at her, “I’m sorry, did I hear you correctly? Did you say that Halloween Town, the Disney Channel movie?”

Piper gasps, smacking his arm. “You said you wouldn’t judge!”

“Wrong! I said I wouldn’t  _ laugh _ at your favorite movie. I also said that I would ask a million questions. So why that movie?” 

Piper lets out another groan. “I don’t know. I just… I don’t know. It started my love for Halloween. I think it was just… the magic of it all?” Her tone softens as she continues, “Like, you’re weird, and you like weird things, but it’s okay because you’re secretly a witch. Finding out that you have magic inside you so you can take on anything that life throws at you. I think that stuck with me the most, especially in later years.” 

Trent was speechless, he’d never heard someone talk with such passion for this movie, but Piper was serious almost stuck in a trance reminiscing about the film. When it had initially come out, his youngest sister made him watch it, but by the end, neither were wowed by it. Annie liked it, but she just said it was good. Now here Piper stands admitting that the film utterly enthralled her. 

“Besides, I was like eight when the movie came out, so I was like, you know, the prime age demographic,” Piper adds with a light laugh. Trent groans, mockingly putting a hand over his heart as if he were just shot. “Don’t say that, Piper. Never say that.” 

The brunette snorts, “Don’t say what? That I was eight?” 

He groans again, “Yes, that. It reminds me of the age-gap between us. I was seventeen when that movie came out!” 

Piper bursts into laughter, “Old man.”

“Young woman.” He pauses, “Fuck, that’s not an insult.” His date cackles beside him as she links an arm around his. “You’re only as old as you feel, Trent.”

“Only as old as I feel? Then we’re in trouble.”

Piper pokes him in the arm, “You should come to yoga class with Cassie and me. It’s great for the mind and body.”

Trent snorts, “Thanks, but uh, I’m gonna have to say no.”

Glee dances in her eyes when he looks down at her, “Brock comes whenever he isn’t busy.” 

The Seal bursts out laughing at this new information, “You’re joking, right?” She shakes his head, only causing him to laugh harder. He mutters a little, “Oh my God,” under his breath. Trent was definitely going to use this against his best friend. 

“Okay, okay, okay.” Piper rests her cheek against his arm, “What’s your all-time favorite movie?” Trent thinks for a moment, “Of all time… I have to say, Jurassic Park. I’ve seen it so many times, and it never gets old. It’s just a classic”

“Good choice.” She giggles. He hums in agreement as they fall into a comfortable silence. 

It isn’t until they’re in silence that he hears the small clicking of her heels. He suddenly felt terrible, making this woman walk everywhere. He hesitates before wrapping an arm around her waist, “If you like, I can carry you the rest of the way. Your legs must be killing you with all this walking.” But Piper just shakes her head, nestling into his side. “It’s fine; I’m used to walking in heels.” 

It was said almost absent-mindedly like she was too distracted to notice her words. Trent was caught off guard for a moment but recovered with a laugh. “Because you do so much rock climbing in heels?” When Piper doesn’t respond, he only grows more curious as they reach her apartment building. She takes a slight step back, her eyes never meeting his. Trent frowns, was this really over heels? Was that what changed her whole demeanor? 

“Piper.” He can see a battle going on in her head. Trent reaches for her hand only to be taken back by her stepping away from him. Piper’s eyes mist over when she finally met his gaze.

“I’m sorry,” she whispers. “I’m so sorry.” 

Trent blinked and looked around for a second.  _ This is a joke, right?  _ “Piper, you have nothing to be sorry about… I’m not even sure what you’re apologizing for.” 

She looks away, “I… I lied to you…”

“You lied? What? Piper, what are you talking about?” For the life of him, Trent couldn’t figure out how such a good night was slowly coming to a halt. 

Piper nods, “I’m not a mountain guide,” her voice breaks, “I work at the American War Museum.” 

Trent can’t seem to find the words he wants to say. He just stares at her. He was more hurt than angry at why she felt the need to lie. “Why’d you lie?” It was the only thing bouncing around in his head that sounded best to ask. When she didn’t respond, he repeated the question. “Piper, why’d you lie to me?” She wasn’t meeting his gaze.  _ Jesus Christ, it’s like trying to get Owen or Daisy to talk to me.  _ He winces at that thought, the last thing he wanted to do was compare the three.

“Piper.”

“I lied because I’ve dated plenty of other guys who seem interested up until I bring up working in a museum. Nothing hurts more than really liking a guy and watching the fun die in their eyes. Nobody wants to date the woman whose memorized old war dates because that’s boring.” She’s defensive, and he can only imagine that she’s building up walls as time marches on. 

“So you just assumed that I’d be like one of those guys? Oh, and by the way, great job at memorizing those things about rock climbing.” Piper shoots him a glare, and okay, he partly deserved it for the memorizing jab. “When did you just assume I like the other guys? When you first saw me or before?”  Was this worse or better than the woman who threw paint at the waiter? 

Worse, definitely worse. He actually liked this one. 

“I didn’t assume anything; I was afraid you would be-”

“That’s assuming. Tell me, did you even climb Mount Kilimanjaro, or did you just get your best friend to lie for you?” 

She glares again. Anger flashed through her eyes, and Trent notices her clenched fist. For a breath, he waits to see if she’ll act on what’s trying to take over in her mind. And for a brief second, he remembered those times when Cassie would show up on his doorstep with a busted lip, or bleeding nose, or twice even a black eye. He always wondered who would do such a thing; then Brock mentioned it was Casper’s best friend who boxed as a way to relieve anger.

“I didn’t lie about rock climbing! I would  _ never _ lie about rock climbing. And yes, maybe I did assume you were going to be one of those jerks I’ve gone out with before. But be honest, Trent, would you have liked me or thought I was exciting if I had told you straight up that I worked in a museum? That for a living, I put together exhibits of different battles from all the damn wars America has fought in? And Exhibits about historical military figures. That I have the Gettysburg Address memorized because I love it, and I think it’s one of the best speeches ever written by man. Would you think any of that was interesting? Do you even like history, or do you fall into the category with so many other people where it was the one subject that completely bored them in school?”

Trent’s silent, he looks away, letting out a huff of hot air. He rubs the back of his neck and shoots her a glance, she’s trying so hard not to cry he can see her eyes water and her lip tremble, but the anger was still there. Piper was a fighter. 

“I just… why. That’s all I want to know, Piper. Why lie?”

“I wanted you to like me,” she states, “I hear all these great things about you and I just… I wanted you to like me. I didn’t want this to be like those other dates where they get bored because I’m fascinated by the Vietnam War. You have this amazing job, and I’m just a historian.” Piper sounds defeated, and that breaks Trent’s heart. He was still partly angry at her for lying, but he could start to see where she was coming from. 

“I think you’ve gotten it in your head that my job is great. A lot of people do that, but it’s not like we’re out there being superheroes or something.”

“You’re better than superheroes, Trent. You’re real. You’ve seen things and done things and have had greater life experiences than that of twenty normal people combined. I was intimidated. So yes, I lied because being a rock climber for a living is far more exciting than putting together a George S. Patton exhibit.”

Trent had a sudden urge to kiss her, while history may not be his favorite topic; he was captivated by the passion she had for the subject. To him, there was nothing hotter than a woman with a fiery passion… even if she did lie about it. But before he has the chance to say anything, his phone makes that all too familiar sound. Trent’s eyes flutter close. 

“Saved by the ring.” Piper’s voice is soft and broken, and there are so many things being left unsaid that he doesn’t think it’s fair work is calling him  _ right now. _ “I have to go.” He says stupidly. When he looks at her, she’s deflated. Pressed against the brick wall of her building, and he could’ve sworn tears were smearing her eye makeup.  “Thank you for dinner, the coffee and donuts, and for walking me back to my apartment. Sorry, I ruined the date, and please be safe.” 

Trent takes her in for a second, memorizing what he can in the dimmed lighting surrounding the building. The small freckle above her upper lip, the small number tattoo on the inside of her wrist. He takes her all in and chooses not to say anything. 

It wasn’t until Trent was on his way to the base when he finally lets out the breath he didn’t know he was holding. “What the fuck?”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> Please let me know your feelings about this fic! I love feedback!


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